


Appraisal

by KuS



Category: MapleStory
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-10-01 06:14:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17238908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KuS/pseuds/KuS
Summary: Ark fails a test.





	Appraisal

**Author's Note:**

> This fanfic is dedicated to everyone who: Failed a(n) exam/final/class, had their GPA drop, didn't do as well in their school term as they'd hope to, or screwed up somehow.
> 
> Warning: Self-loathing below.

Having finished up everything at school, Alber started walking home.

He felt relieved to have been done with everything for the day. He was exhausted and wanted to rest. His mind wandered off as he relaxed and decompressed.

He stopped walking when, in the distance, he saw a familiar figure. A maroon haired lef sitting on a bench, hunched over, head in hands, elbows rested on his legs.  
Alber smiled mischeviously and flew over slowly and silently. When he got behind the lef, he said “Ark.”

“Wha!? Whoa whoa whoa!” Ark jumped up and nearly stumbled over, but managed to regain his balance. The papers in his hand made flapping noises as they flipped around while he flailed his arms. He turned around and saw Alber. “You scared me!” He said, trying to catch his breath.

“What are you doing?”

“Nothing, I’m just thinking about stuff.”

Ark composed himself and they sat down on the bench together.

“What’s up?”

Ark sighed. “It’s nothing. I failed another test.”

“Which subject?”

“Calculus. I thought I did good, but... When I got the test back, I saw a mining application stapled on top of it.”

“What!? Which teacher was this?” Alber could feel his hands grow warm with fury.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m probably going to need it.”

Being a miner was considered the one of the lowest jobs one could have. It was a dangerous and demanding job that was relegated to those who had no talent or magical power. It was the job of the inferiors, the pariahs, the untouchables. Simply put, it was undesirable in every sense. Those who took that job also wore the label of “undesirable.”

Ark sighed again. “Man... I thought I did so well on that test, but I, I forgot to use L’hopital’s rule, and that threw everything off.”

“It’s alright Ark, calculus is difficult. That’s why they say ‘C’ is for calculus.”

“And ‘D’ is for diploma.”

Ark and Alber started laughing. It started out heartily, but died as Ark broke down.

“I’m not, I’m not... sniff... Suited for anything. I keep making dumb mistakes and failing. No matter how hard I try, I don’t go anywhere.” Ark crumpled the papers in his hands as he balled them into fists. “What can someone worthless like me do? I’ll just... become a miner. At least then... sniff... I can, sniff, I can help by providing crystals.” Tears were rapidly streaming down his face, and his nose started running.

Alber was taken aback by Ark’s breakdown. Normally, he’d just laugh off the failure and give it another go.

“Don’t say that, it’s just one test.”

Ark hunched forward and buried his face in his hands. “No, it’s not just one test. I keep failing at everything. I can’t do anything.” He took a deep inhale and then sighed again. “Haaah. I really wanted to become someone who could make a difference in the world, but I guess trash like me can only help by becoming... sniff, a miner.” Ark paused for a moment before sitting back up and making eye contact with Alber. “I’ll be sure to give you the best crystals I find. They’re all, sniff, yours.”

“Ark, you shouldn’t be talking about yourself like this.”

Ark gave Alber a wry smile. He looked forward and sighed.

“Ark.”

Ark didn’t say anything.

“Ark.” Alber said with a firmer tone.

Ark frowned harder as he tried to resist his tears; his mouth was quivering. He wasn’t in a state for talking right now. He was sniffing uncontrollably. He knew that his words would not come out fluently.

“Ark.” Alber leaned over and put his hands on Ark’s shoulder, reorienting him to face him. “Look at me.”

Ark’s eyes narrowed as he looked toward the side, avoiding Alber’s gaze, and bit his lip. He didn’t want to show his weakness anymore than this. He couldn’t stop minding Alber’s hands. He understood that there wasn’t any way forward but to comply. He made eye contact with Alber.

“Look. You’re not perfect, but you’re not your mistakes. Sure, you may not be doing well now, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t do better in the future. Screw what that teacher said. There’s going to be something that you’re going to be great at, but you’ll never make it if you put yourself down and resign yourself like this.”

Ark didn’t answer. He looked down towards the ground.

“Would you be saying the things you’re saying right now to me if I was failing?”

Ark shook his head. His throat was tense, and his chest felt heavy from all the sniffing. He swallowed to ease his throat, and uttered out: “No...”

“You wouldn’t, right? You should treat yourself more kindly”

“I... know. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry, you don’t have anything to apologize for.”

Somehow, this seemed to have an opposite effect. Did it? Ark cried harder.

“You might not be doing well in school right now, but there are other things you can do to help out too. There’s still a long way to go. Don’t worry about it too much.”

“.. Th-th-thank-th- thanks, sniff, A-Al-Al, sniff, Alber.”

Alber didn’t say anything back immediately. They sat there, listening to the ambient sounds.

“Ah! But you know, you’ll never have to be a miner.”

“H-huh? How- how come?” Ark’s sniffing fit started getting better.

“Because I’ll be successful enough to take care of you.” Alber grabbed his sleeve and pulled it up, wiping Ark’s nose with it.

“Wha!?”

“I’ll pay you a trillion mesos every day, you won’t have to do anything.”

This was a little insulting to Ark’s pride, but he deeply appreciated the sentiment. His speech became coherent again. “No way!! I’m not a burden.”

“Of course not. You never have been, and never will be.”

Ark gave a displeased look. “I’ll make my service worth a trillion mesos.”

“Right, right. Anything you do priceless. I’m going to go bankrupt trying to match your worth.”

“And when _you’re_ broke and living in a dumpster, I’ll take you in and pay you a trillion mesos every day.”

They burst out laughing.

**Author's Note:**

> Remember everyone: You're not perfect, but you're not your mistakes! You'll get to where you need to be, whatever you're going through right now is only a setback - if you let it be just that. It might be hard, but not impossible. A crumpled up, stepped on $100 bill is still worth $100! You are much more than whatever happened :). Stay resilient!
> 
> If any of y'all are struggling with algebra, trig, geo, calculus, you should check out PatrickJMT on Youtube, or utilize Khanacademy. PatrickJMT has a lot of really helpful videos. Khanacademy should be free and is a really good resource for learning material.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this work. LMK if you have any questions, comments, or concerns.


End file.
